A Beautiful Mind
by SinaBrosLN
Summary: Cloud would do anything for his bestfriend, even when she plans to go to an art school to find her true love and is begged by her father to accompany her. Though he didnt expect to meet such a hyperactive man to fill his optimistic life with such drama and feelings that he has never felt before. A Clack ( Cloud x Zack ) Rated T for now...
1. Chapter 1

**Hello everyone! Welcome to my new story "A Beautiful Mind" I sort of came up with this story in a dream with a combination of my art skills XD I do have this story thought up in my head and I gotta say is that shit will be going down in the future so please continue reading any future updates!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Final Fantasy characters that are shown in this story, all rights go to their rightful owners.**

**Let's get started shall we~ **

**P.s**

**Please excuse any spelling errors or miss used words in here, my brain is a dum dum sometimes, hehe ^^;;**

**A Beautiful Mind**

**Chapter 1**

" Try making those lines just a bit bolder, it's a tiny add on but it will make the drawing stand out more…" A spiky blonde explained as he pointed to an area on the girl's sketch pad. She let out a sigh and pulled her long dark brown her back.

"It's no use; I'm no good at this Cloud." She whined and pushed the sketch pad away from her and leaned into the leather couch; trying to get rid of her back pain. "Drawing makes my back hurt" she continued. Cloud pulled off his reading glasses and smiled.

"You were doing well so far and the back pains are something that you gotta deal with if you want to become an artist Tifa." He said as he also leaned back on the couch, his back was hurting also but he was used to it and didn't even notice it half the time. He looked to the brunette and giggled.

"What?" She asked; confused by his sudden laughter.

"I still remember when you came up to me and demanded me to teach you how to art." He laughed at the memory. It happened their sophomore year of high school, Cloud was eating lunch in his usual spot when one of the most popular girl in school ran up to him and demanded Cloud to teach her how to 'art'. 'She could of said to teach her how to draw or paint but no she had to go all out and say art.' Cloud thought.

Tifa blushed in embarrassment. "W-whatever! I have my reasons!" she defended herself.

"Oh really? What are they then?" This was something Cloud was curious about; Tifa never struck him as an artsy type. Tifa's face turned into a darker crimson.

"W-well.."

"Go on." Cloud encouraged.

"There…was this guy who went to our school, he was a senior…I'm in love with him…" She said. This got Cloud's full attention. Tifa was in love with someone, no wonder he never saw her with a boyfriend. "I had heard he was going to one of the best school of arts and-"

"And you want to get in that school so you can be with your love." I finished for her. She looked down and nodded, her cheeks where still tinted red.

Cloud knew she would get in the school. Yes, the school was extremely expensive but that's not something that Tifa's father couldn't handle. Tifa's family are very wealthy, he remembered that he had became very worried when he found out that she was rich because he was afraid that the family was going to think that he was some kind of gold digger and was only getting close to Tifa because of her money but it turned out that her parents knew the situation and had actually taken a liking to Cloud.

"So, how long have you and this guy been dating?" Cloud asked, though this caused Tifa to jump and tense up.

"D-d-dating?! W-well…ummm…" She started scratching the back of her head. "…well the thing is…" Cloud was beginning to worry on what her answer was going to be, "I sorta…kind of…never spoken to him." And Cloud has very, VERY good reasons for feeling worried.

" So you're saying…that he doesn't even know you exist?" Cloud asked. Tifa quickly nodded in embarrassment though Cloud was surprised, Tifa is a very popular girl in school so it was almost impossible to not know who she was. "Well, maybe he does know who you are; maybe he was too scared to talk to you. So it's possible that he likes you as well." He stated. Tifa looked up with hope in her eyes.

"Really, you think so?"

"Well sure, I have high hopes that this mission of yours will succeed." he said, he wasn't lying. Tifa is a very attractive girl, he even had a crush on her for a little while but it soon turned into a close friendship, Cloud cared deeply for Tifa as if she where his own sister.

"Oh Cloud you're too nice for your own good!" Tifa screamed as she threw herself on him to give him a super tight hug.

"Ugh! C-can't breathe!" He gasped. After a few more seconds she finally let him go while giggling. After catching his breath he joined in the laughter.

"Okay let's finished this drawing!" He said.

"Guuhh!" She groaned.

"Its summer vacation and we are going to practice every day until it's time for you to go to that fancy art school!"

"I'm surprised that you're not going to try and get in with me Cloud." Tifa said as she grabbed her sketch pad.

"Eh, not interested." He simply stated. That was a lie though, he would love to go to a school for art it's just that he has no money like Tifa does and he is not too interested in getting a student loan.

"Okay let's do this!"

~2 months later~

At the end of the month everyone was going to start school and college, even Tifa was going to be leaving him soon to peruse her dream of being an artist with the man she loves, or something like that, he wasn't sure if the man she likes is even a painter, he could be a dancer or in a choir as well which would have made more sense if she started going to the school for singer, she had quite the singing voice.

Cloud was at Tifa's place but not to hang out or anything. It was the oddest thing, her father had called him up saying that he needed to talk to Cloud about something important. It's not like Cloud didn't get along with the man or anything, in fact the man was quite fond of him but they never really 'hung out' in any kind of way.

He had made his way to Mr. Lockhart's office door and gently knocked on it. He had gotten an immediate response for him to enter.

"Come in." The man had a booming voice that could scare anyone.

Cloud slowly entered the room; he would be lying if he said he wasn't nervous. The man looked up from his desk and smiled; seeing that it was Cloud, he gestured to a chair that sat in front of the chair for Cloud to sit down. Cloud sat down on the seat to the right, while he waited for Mr. Lockhart to speak he observed his office, he mostly had family pictures, he even had some that where just Tifa but at a younger age.

Once Mr. Lockhart was done typing something down on his laptop, he pushed it away and smiled to Cloud.

"Now Cloud, as we both know, my little girl will be leaving soon to Midgar School of the Arts…" He started, Cloud nodded; already knowing this information. "Now the reason I called you up is because…I don't want my daughter running around in Midgar…alone…" Cloud started to feel a bit confused, not knowing where he was going with this. "I also don't feel that drawing and painting is meant for my daghter…" He said. That sort of pinched at Clouds heart, Maybe Mr. L though that art was a waste of time…The hurt that Cloud felt in the inside must have been showing on his face as well because Mr. L quickly held his hand up in defense. "Not that I think art is a bad thing! It's just that…" He brought his hand back down and frowned. "She always had this shine in her eyes when she sang, I don't see much of it when she tries to draw or paint, I don't feel like she's making the right decision with this…" He became quiet as if he was in thought. After a few more seconds of silence, Cloud decided to break it.

"Uh, sir?" He said in a quivering voice, this knocked Mr. L out of his thoughts, he looked up to Cloud and smiled once more and said.

"So I would like you to watch over my daughter in Midgar!"…

"W-wait what?" Cloud was confused, the man wanted him to watch over Tifa, as in go to Midgar with her?!

"Yes! I trust you the most out of all of Tifa's friends, besides you love to draw, don't you? Attend the art school with Tifa then!" He said in a carefree happy tone, though Cloud felt anything but...

"B-but Mr. Lockhart…I… I don't have that kind of money…" Cloud finally stated, hearing all this made him feel worse about not being able to go to any art school.

Mr. Lockhart didn't stutter hearing this news. "It's covered." He simply said. The response made Cloud freeze. Covered, as in already paid for, as in he can go to an art school?!

"C-covered?" Cloud asked to make sure; he didn't want to get his hopes up.

"It's been paid for, though it was quite hard to get you in since the school year is so close to starting but I pulled a few strings and managed to get you in." He said with a smile. That's when it all sank in and Cloud allowed himself to smile.

"W-wow…I…" Cloud was about to thank him but then remembered the real reason he was going. "I'll take good care of your daughter Mr. Lockhart!" Cloud said as he stood up straight from his chair as did Mr. L.

As they both shook hands there came a quick knock at the door then Tifa coming through it.

"What's with all the noise?" She asked confused and became even more confused seeing Cloud here. "Cloud, what are you doing here?" Cloud didn't know how to respond, luckily Mr. L did; he came around his large mahogany desk and put an arm around Cloud's shoulder.

"Cloud here decided to go to Midgar with you!" He said with a huge grin. Wait, did Tifa know that Mr. L wanted to do this?! Tifa's face brightened up and she squealed.

"Yes! We are going to have so much fun Cloud; this is going to be great!"

~3 weeks later~

Cloud had his two bags packed and ready to go, he and Tifa were finally going to head out to Midgar. He wasn't going to lie; he is going to miss Nibelheim. His mother was in the kitchen washing dishes, probably trying to distract herself from bawling her eyes out. Of course it didn't work too well because once Cloud was ready to go she had ran up to him and wrapped her soapy fingers around him, yes Mrs. Strife is who Cloud is going to miss the most.

"I'm only going to be gone two years mom, besides I'm going to visit on the holidays…" He tried to comfort her but she just tightened her hold and cried some more.

"You better call me! Like a lot!" She whined. Cloud laughed.

"Yes mom I will, I'll make sure to call you…" Cloud wanted to hurry up and leave, he didn't want to end up being the one crying too.

After 3 more attempts to get away from his mother he was finally able to leave his house and got a nauseating drive to the airport where he had met Tifa who was sitting at a bench reading a magazine. She had about five bags piled up next to her.

She was wearing a white t-shirt with red spandex and tethered jeans with a pair of black boots, her outfit was different from what she would usually wear but what made it more odd was the thick rimmed glasses she was wearing, from what Cloud could recall, Tifa had perfect vision.

"Tifa?" Cloud called out in a questioning tone, he was just trying to make sure that the woman he was looking at was not some doppelganger or something. Tifa looked up from her magazine and jumped out of her seat once she saw who it was.

"Cloud!" She began to wave.

Tifa began to pose for her new outfit but Cloud was just confused.

"Well what do you think? Perfect for the occasion, right?"

"I don't think I understand your outfit Tifa." Cloud said, unsure. Tifa dropped her pose and pouted

"I'm dressed like an artist, ya know?! I did a lot of research on this!" She sounded insulted and Cloud held up his hands to defend himself.

"S-sorry Tifa but you look like some hipster." Cloud said, breaking into laughter after Tifa's pout turn into a frown.

"I tried real hard on this outfit!" She said in a stern voice, Cloud stopped laughing and apologized.

"Sorry Tif but not all artists don't dress the same; we just dress in whatever makes us comfortable. You could have just worn your normal clothing and you still would have been dressed as an artist." He smiled.

Tifa had actually taken what Cloud said to though. She smiled and agreed.

"Yeah, art isn't an outfit; it's a life style or something…" She said. Cloud laughed and nodded.

'Flight 297 to Midgar is now boarding, Flight 297 will be taking off in 30 minutes-

Cloud and Tifa heard the announcer and quickly started to gather their things.

"Midgar here we come!" Yelled Tifa as they made their way through the airport

Cloud didn't really think of how hot it would be in Midgar in the summer, yes he knew that Nibelheim was hot as well but they still got that mountain breeze. Though summer or not he would always continue to wear his blue sweater, it just suited him better that's why he wore it all the time. Some people even though he was just too poor to buy any other clothing. Stepping out of the airport Cloud immediately pushed his sleeves up to his elbows.

"It's hot here…" Tifa complained.

"Yeah" Cloud agreed.

"There are so many Taxies that I don't even know which one is ours." Tifa said as the both wondered. Cloud came to a stop as soon as he saw a man holding up a sign with his and Tifa's name written on it. Cloud took hold of Tifa's shoulder to stop her from walking.

"I think we found our ride."

Cloud and Tifa showed their I.D's to the cab driver to confirm who they were before jumping into the taxi. Cloud had just about enough of transportation; it made him nauseous, the plane ride was the worst. He had to run to the bathroom a few times to puke his brains out and now he was back in a death trap.

The 20 minute ride to Midgar's art school wasn't so bad, Tifa kept him occupied with conversations so it distracted him from his car sickness. Though they both became quiet once the saw the large school, it was magnificent. It had a large building in the middle with a large Clock in the center of it. They where guessing that, that's where the main offices where but behind it they could see that there where multiple other buildings, those where probably the different classes.

The cab came to a stop at the front gates of the school. Once he and Tifa had gotten all their belongings out, the cab drove off. Cloud and Tifa just stood there in awe at the beautiful school. Cloud looked to Tifa who was now trembling.

"You nervous?" Cloud asked. Tifa jumped a little and looked to cloud with worry on her face. Cloud smiled and held out his arm, she smiled back and wrapped her arm with his and they made their way to the large clock building.

"Hello we are Cloud Strife and Tifa Lockhart." Cloud greeted the front desk woman. She had her blonde hair in a pony tail and wore bright red lipstick that complimented her red button up satin shirt. She looked up to them with the look of boredom on her face.

"Oh, the last minute students" She muttered and she started to dig through some files. After finding the files she opened them up and read through them, checking if they where the right ones. "Okay will you sign here please?" She said as she put the two opened folders in front of them. Tifa and Cloud nodded as they took a pen and started to write their signatures into their folders. Once they were done the lady took their folders and sat them down in front of her on her desk, she then took her desk phone and dialed a number.

"Yeah, we need two escorts for a Cloud Strife and a Tifa Lockhart, yeah, yeah, alright." She sat the phone down and gave them both her fakest smile. "Well you both are ready to go, welcome to Midgar's Institute of Art and Technology!"

Cloud and Tifa gave their polite smiles back and thank you's and went and sat at a nearby bench to wait for their escorts. After 5 minutes a girl with curled brown hair that was held up by a fuchsia ribbon came through the two glass doors, she wore a pink dress with a fuchsia cardigan.

"Cloud Strife?" She called out; she had a soft voice that complimented her looks. Cloud stood up and walked to her, he was a bit confused as to why he and Tifa couldn't just get the same escort.

"Hello." Cloud greeted. The young woman looked up to him and smiled,

"Shall we?"

"Um, yeah but what about Tifa?" Cloud asked, looking to his friend who still sat at a bench, looking just as confused as he did. The girl looked to Tifa and smiled

"Oh, you both are at a different level, someone who is at the same level as her will escort her, it makes things easier." She explained. Cloud somewhat understood. So was the girl going to be in the same class as he? He didn't even know that there where levels! Was that why he had to send them a few of his works, to see what level he was at? Cloud began to worry, what if he got the lowest level? Oh no, what if he wasn't good enough?!

Just then another girl walked in,well more like stumbled in, she wore a dress shirt and jeans, her blonde hair was cut and styled into a bob.

The brunette took hold of Clouds arm and lead him out of the building, Cloud looked back to Tifa who was being approached by the blonde girl.

"That's Elena, she's Tifa's escort, so you can stop worrying." The girl giggled. "I'm Aerith by the way." She greeted. They both made it to the circular court yard that was surrounded by greenery and white benches that a few students where resting on, others where sketching on the grass as other played their instrument in front of a group that where practicing a dance routine, this courtyard was filled with life and inspiration for anyone. This brought a smile to Cloud's face.

"This is the court yard, this where students go to let off steam and to relax as you can see it's quite lively right now." She giggled.

Aerith had shown him the large cafeteria and the huge gym and the glamorous computer room for students to use on their free time.

"Now we can head to our class!" Aerith said, giddy. Finally their class, he was pretty exited, he couldn't wait. But then it hit him, did lower level class rooms get not so special treatment, Cloud started to feel dull inside because he wasn't sure which level he had gotten.

"Hey,um, Aerith?" Cloud said as he followed her to their next destination.

"Yes?"

"I was wondering, which level are we?" He asked with worry in his voice. Aerith giggled but kept walking.

"I thought you would have known, well are level A art students." She answered and looked to him with a smile on her face. "It's the highest and best level you can get to, congratulations Cloud!" Cloud paused for only a moment, only to resume walking along side her. He was in a state of shock. Highest level?! Cloud couldn't help but feel giddy himself at this news. He is most definitely going to tell his mother the good news; she's going to be so proud of him.

After a while of walking, Cloud was beginning to feel, impatient. Shouldn't have they gotten to their building by now. Cloud began to feel confused when they started to enter an orchid, yes it was pretty and all but he was too confused to even care.

His questions were answered when an isolated building sat upon a hill that had a metal plaque that read 'Level A Art Building' There were no other buildings around it, it was all alone.

"Our building is quite some ways away from everything else but the isolation and the peace is very relaxing and helps us concentrate on our paintings." Aerith explained.

"How many of us are there?" Cloud asked. That question made Aerith pause in her steps; she gave a nervous laugh and held up 4 fingers.

"Just four of us, and that's including you and our teacher…" She said. Now Cloud was in shock, he didn't know how such a small number class even existed! There had to be more artists like Aerith and him, right?

"People these days go for things that will make them famous, like singing or dance; you find that the poetic class has a small amount as well." She explained

"I see…" Cloud said in disappointment, well at least he would get more room to draw and paint.

"Well you won't be able to enter the class room until the school semester actually starts in one week so I'll show you to your dorm room-" Just then there came a continuing scream that seemed to be quickly getting closer and closer. Cloud turned to the hill and saw a figure running down it at full speed; he couldn't even make out who it was.

"AERITH SAVE MEEEEEE!"

He couldn't even dodge it…

**END CH 1**

**A/N**

**I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of my new story!**

**I'm we can all guess who is running down that hill *cough* Zack *cough cough*  
>I am very excited for this story, it makes me feel so artsy so I am making a comic out of it, of course the written story will be way ahead and you guys will already know what happens but it will still be fun to see the comic version of it! <strong>

**I will be uploading the comic on .com , I have yet to upload anything so there is no link that will direct you to the story but there will be one in future chapters!**

**Well that is all!**

**I thank you for reading my story, please come back for more!**


	2. Chapter 2

**AHHH! Second chapter! **** So far I am having so much fun with this story, I hope this motivation lasts for a loooong time haha ^^ **

**Comics for this story will be put up very soon and I am very excited but for now let's enjoy the written story.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Final Fantasy characters that are shown in this story, all rights go to their rightful owners.**

**P.S**

**Again, sorry if I made some spelling errors or misused words, I do finish and edit these chapters when I'm half awake hehe ^^;;**

**Let's get started shall we ~ **

**Chapter 2**

Cloud never thought that he would have such bad reflexes, he even saw it coming and still found himself knocked to the ground.

Everything went black for only a moment, he didn't pass out or anything but he did shut his eyes as tight as possible as if it would protect him somehow. The weight on him was heavy, heavier than he was. When he finally opened his eyes all he could see where dark black spikes poking around and about, he was confused of what it could be but his questions were answered when the spikes started moving and revealing that it was a head of hair that where attached to a man's face.

Zack had been running away from Angeal, who had caught him sneaking into the class room again so he had taken a run for it, though he had forgotten about the hill and his speed accelerated to a pace that he had no control of, good thing he was finally able to come to a stop….

He jumped a little when he felt something squirming under him; he sat up to see what it was only to find him staring into bright blue orbs that stared right back at him. The petite boy had messy blonde spiky hair and wore a navy blue sweater that looked a bit worn down. Zack then lifted up both his legs to see what pants he was wearing but then realized how bad this looked. The boy's angelic face was now bright red.

"U-uhm this isn't-"

"Predator!" Cloud yelled as he brought his leg back and swung it, making a direct hit to the man with the spiky black hair.

…

"I am sooo sorry for kicking you in the face!" Cloud apologized again as the three of them sat in the infirmary. Aerith held an ice pack to Zack's swelling face, he didn't look too happy. He grunted in response of Cloud's continuous apologies.

Aerith let out a sigh "What on Earth where you doing Zack?" She questioned.

Zack looked to the blonde, sure he thought the guy was pretty attractive but all he felt towards him was frustration towards the boy, and he only wanted to check what kind of jeans he was wearing! He wanted to make sure if the guy was some hobo who had snuck into the school.

"Angeal caught me in the art room again, I really didn't want to deal with his boring lectures about the rules so I booked it…" He explained with frustration in his voice.

"Oh Zack…" Aerith sighed again in annoyance. "You need to stop doing that, you only need to wait a little longer-"

"I have no inspiration anywhere else, only in there." He interrupted.

"He does have a point." Cloud said. The both turned to look at Cloud; whom they almost forgotten were there. Though Cloud was agreeing with Zack, he was still having trust problems with the blonde.

"And who the hell are you?" Zack rudely asked.

This caused Cloud to jump a little, feeling the shyness creep up on him. He quickly looked down to hide his reddening face. He did not know why this Zack guy made him so nervous, he didn't like it.

"This is Cloud Strife," Aerith said. "He is a freshman here." She finished with a smile.

"What the hell was a freshman like you doing around level A?" Zack asked in a demanding tone, he really didn't like this Cloud guy.

"U-umm!" was all he could get out. Did he do something wrong? Maybe the guy was still mad at him.

"Argh!" Zack yelped in pain when Aerith pinched his swollen cheek.

"Stop being so rude Zack!" She demanded and let go of his cheek. "Especially when it's toward our new class mate."

Zack quickly turned to Aerith with the look of surprise as he rubbed his swollen cheek, he then turned to Cloud. Looking into the boy's innocent eyes just made him scowl.

"Whatever," He said as he got up to leave. "I gotta go talk to Angeal." He said and left the infirmary.

Cloud let out the air that he was holding in. The guy was intense; he really did not like Cloud. Cloud began to feel bad, he really shouldn't have kicked him in the face, it was all just a misunderstanding, and he should have known that it was!

"I'm sorry about Zack" Aerith apologized. Cloud jumped a little to her voice.

"O-ohh…" He rubbed the back of his neck. "It's alright really; it's my entire fault anyways." He smiled as he got up from his seat. "He may hate me now but I have high hopes that he will be able to forgive me."

"Oh, quite the optimist you are." She smiled while she too got up from her seat. Cloud blushed a bit and gave her a nervous smile.

After Aerith showed Cloud the rest of the not so important things, she then gave him his dorm room key. "The level A dorms are far up north from here" she said. "Unfortunately females aren't allowed in the male's dormitory so I'm afraid that's as far as I can go."

"Oh, it's fine; it shouldn't be too hard to find my room." Cloud smiled. Aerith smiled back and looked to her watch.

"Well I have other errands to attend to." She said and started digging through her pocket. She pulled out a folded piece of paper and handed it to Cloud. "Here you go, it's your schedule, and it's not big since you only have one class but it also gives you the hours of the cafeteria and stuff." Cloud took the folded paper and stuck it in the shoulder bag and thanked her before she ran off to attend to her other duties.

Instead of going straight to the dorm, Cloud pulled out his phone and texted Tifa.

-Hey, is your tour over?

He sent the text and immediately got a phone call from her.

"Cloud, oh thank god! I'm so lost!" She whined when he answered. He let out a sigh.

"Tifa, the whole tour thing was supposed to prevent you from being lost. Where are you?"

"I'm in front of some level B building, I think it's for dance or something. Cloud save me!"

"Alright, alright I'm on my way, stay put." He sighed and hung up. He slid his phone in his back pocket and made his way to the level B building. He had forgotten to ask Aerith what the lowest level was, perhaps D or F, he will have to ask her the next time he sees her.

Cloud was glad he had good memory, or he would have become just as lost as Tifa was. He looked up to see the level B dance building and smiled.

"Cloud!" He heard Tifas voice call out, but he couldn't place where it was coming from, he looked around trying to spot her but she had gotten to him first. She jumped him from behind and held onto his back for dear life.

"Tifa what are you-" He had began to ask but stopped as soon as he saw a hoard of guys making their way towards them.

"Help me Cloud." She whined.

"Tifa what the heck did you do?!" He felt like he was going to start panicking, wondering what the woman could have done. Maybe she had insulted them and now they want revenge! Maybe they were going to take it out on Cloud too! Whatever it was, Cloud didn't care. He promised Mr. Lockhart that he would protect Tifa and that's what he's going to do. Cloud put on his best frown and faced the men, only to feel confused to see that they all had friendly faces.

"Can I please have your number, mam?" one of them said.

"No give your number to me!" another yelled. The whole group then erupted; asking Tifa her number and if she would go out with them. Cloud sighed and laughed a little, Tifa still held onto his back. Realizing that Tifa didn't want anything to do with these men, Cloud put his game face back on and held out his hand to silence the group.

"Um, sorry to disappoint you but she is inlove with someone else!" He announced, the group fell quiet and stared at Cloud with all blank stares, as if they where observing him.

"Hey, she's kind of cute too, don't you think" One said to the other and most of them started to nod in agreement.

They seriously thought Cloud was a girl?! He felt his blood begin to boil.

"I'm not a girl you little twerps!" He yelled as he made his voice sound deeper. The group gasped and stepped back. Yes Cloud was cute and innocent looking but he could be quite intimidating at times. "Now get lost!" The group of males finally booked it and ran off, some of them screaming.

Cloud let out a breath and smiled.

"You okay Cloud? I hope your ego isn't too hurt." She said with a smile as she hopped off of Cloud. Cloud then turned to her and began to pose as a woman.

"Well what can I say? I do make a pretty lady!" He said. Tifa stared for a second before erupting in laughter with Cloud joining in. Cloud wasn't really mad about being mistaken for a girl, he was used to it. He used to have hair long enough for a pony tail so he did attract a few males, before he had cut it all off that is.

"So what level are you?" Cloud asked Tifa as they munched on their snacks that they got from the cafeteria. Tifa gave Cloud a cocky smiled.

"I am a level B!" She announced, Tifa felt confident about her level, she had guessed that it was extremely hard to get in level B. She remembered when she had sent in the best of her work so they could determine which level she would be put in; she even had high hopes that she would surpass Cloud. He had sent in some random drawing that he had drawn on the spot.

"Oh congrats! I figured that you would get into one of the high levels, I am after all your teacher!" He said.

"Oh haha." She said in sarcasm. "What level did you get D or C?" She wasn't saying it as a joke, she was actually certain that he had gotten a level lower than her, in fact, she was hoping for it. Cloud laughed.

"Oh sure try to put me down there but I, Cloud Strife, am a level A artist." He said proudly. Tifa frowned a little, she felt a pang of jealousy, she knew she was supposed to be happy for Cloud but she still wanted to be better than him. Cloud felt a little bit worried for Tifa, her face looked pained.

"Tifa, are you okay?" Cloud asked in concern. Tifa snapped out of herself loathing and smiled.

"O-oh I'm fine, I'm just really surprised, that's good Cloud!" She said in her most cheery voice. Cloud wasn't so sure about her excuse but he decided to stick with it. He smiled and changed the subject.

"So, did you find your crush?" He asked. He would say the name but even he didn't know to the man was. Tifa had refused to tell him who he was.

"No not yet, I'm pooped today so I'll start my search tomorrow." She sighed.

"You do know it's possible that he isn't even here yet. He might just come right when the school year starts." Cloud said.

"That's true but I still want to try…" She said as she looked to the distance.

"It's possible that he's a level B student as well." Cloud said in attempt to cheer her up, unfortunately it didn't. She shook her head.

"I already asked if he was and they didn't recognize his name."

"Well what is his name? I could help in your search ya know." Cloud offered in an attempt to get the name of the guy. Tifa became flustered and shook her head again.

"N-no! I'll tell you who he is when I start dating him." She exclaimed.

"Guuhhh! Whatever you say boss!" Cloud said as he stretched, he was pretty tired too. It was quite an eventful day for him, he was on a flight for a few hours and is now in one of the best schools out there and was attacked by some Zack guy. Cloud blushed remembering their encounter and quickly shook his head as if it would make the memory go away.

Sigh, "I'm tired…"

Zack had stormed into his dorm room, letting out a loud growl in frustration; scaring his roommate out of his computer chair.

"Whoah man! What's your deal?!" The red head asked. Zack turned to his roommate and pointed to his own swollen cheek. The red head got up and got a closer inspection before bursting into laughter.

"Shut up, Johnny! It's not funny!" Zack yelled to his roommate who still continued to laugh.

"Ah man! How in the hell did you manage to get that?" He said after he was able to control his laughter. Zack's face became flustered and he looked away with a frown; recalling the encounter he had with the blonde with him landing in-between the boy's legs.

"None of your business, I'm going to take a shower!" He exclaimed as he ran to the bathroom.

It was odd for Zack to be in such a serious pissy mood, he was usually so hyperactive and happy. It must have been something big to put him in such a foul mood. Johnny shrugged it off and went back to his computer.

Zack knew he was over reacting and he really didn't know why. He didn't know why that Cloud guy bugged him so much.

"Maybe it's his stupid optimism or his stupid sweater or his stupid big blue eyes…" He muttered. Clouds eyes where the things that Zack remembered the most, he had almost gotten lost looking in them.

"Guuuhh! And now I have to deal with him!" He yelled. There was no way he could deal with all this. He took a deep breath and calmed himself down.

"This is going to be an interesting year…"

**END CH 2**

**A/N**

**Sorry that this chapter wasn't as long as the first but it's probably best that I leave it at here since there is going to be a time lapse soon hehe ^^**

**Next chapter will have more Cloud and Zack time so sorry if this one didn't have much.**

**The comic book is about 6 pages in and I am very excited about it **** I have yet to upload anything on smackjeeves but I will soon **

**Thank you for reading!**


	3. Chapter 3

**HOLY CRAP!**

**First I would like to apologize on how long this took; I was going through the worst writers block in history I swear!**

**I also have been working on an animated movie project called "The Phoenix Tree" and no it is not yaoi or fan fic, it is an original story that came out of my little head of mine! Hehe^^**

**Well anyways here's chapter two, I still plan on finishing this fic along with my other "I Married a Prostitute" **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any Final Fantasy characters that are shown in this story, all rights go to their rightful owners.**

**Let's get started now shall we! **

**P.S**

**Please excuse and misspelled and misplaced words! I can be a dum dum at times when I'm editing!**

**Chpater 3**

_**Understanding people is just as important as understanding yourself, Cloud.  
>Remember, no matter how much a person is tainted, they are still a person…<br>Use that beautiful Mind of yours to heal people's hearts…**_

_**My darling child…**_

Cloud always wanted to see the bright side to everything, when he found out that he had a roommate even though he really really really liked his privacy though he only smiled and figured that it would be a good experience.

His roommate had shoulder length straight black hair and a tilak in the middle of his forehead. His dark brown eyes landed on him when Cloud entered the room. He was sitting at a desk and seemed to be writing a report or an essay of some sorts.

"Hello, you must be the newcomer." He greeted "You can take the right side of the room." He said as he pointed to the right side that was empty with only a mattress. "They should be delivering a dresser along with a desk and chair as well, it should all be here tomorrow or so, so please bear with it."

Cloud gave him a quick nod. The man then stood up and held out his hand. "My name is Tseng Kisaragi, it is a pleasure to meet you." Cloud smile and took his hand; while shaking it he introduced himself as well.

"Cloud, Cloud Strife."

"Strife?" He questioned, looking a bit surprised, this worried Cloud. "You would happen to be related to-"

"It's a common last name!" Cloud exclaimed way to loud. Tseng continued to look at him as if he were trying to figure something out, like, Strife is most definitely not a common name. "W-well I better start unpacking." He quickly said before Tseng figured everything out by just looking at him. Cloud was very surprised that Tseng even recognized his last name. 'hopefully others won't as well…' he thought.

Finding that his suit cases and other bags were successfully delivered to his room in one piece, he began unpacking the things that he could since he didn't even have a dresser yet. He looked back to his roommate who was now sitting back at his desk writing and typing on his laptop. Cloud would have to remember to start saving up for one of those, though he wouldn't mind having to go to a computer lab either.

Zack had woken up to his alarm. He had a hard time getting to sleep since he kept having nightmares of a certain spiky haired blonde laughing evilly at him while he got trampled by a bunch of angry chocobos. It had been a week since he saw the boy but for some reason he couldn't get him out of his head. This was the first time that Zack Fair strongly disliked someone and he still couldn't figure out why he didn't like the boy. Maybe it was because he was 'too' nice, or the fact that he kicked him in the face?! It could explain the nightmares…maybe.

Usually Mondays were everyone's least favorite day of the week but Zack loved Mondays and so do most of the people who goes to this school, especially when today is the first day back in classes. Zack smiled as he walked down the stairs in the dorms though it quickly faded when he reached the bottom floor where he saw Cloud locking his door to his room, he wore the same navy blue sweater with his shoulder bag's strap going over it and this time was wearing grey jeans. Feeling Zack's presents Cloud looked up and the both locked eyes. After what seemed forever Cloud smiled.

"Good morning, Zack was it?" He greeted. Not wanting to be completely rude Zack gave him a small nod and started to walk pass him. Though only moments later Cloud was by his side walking next to him, Zack looked down to him, Cloud had to at least be a foot shorter than him, he was looking ahead with a smile plastered on his face. Zack was beginning to get mixed feelings about the boy, yes he was very friendly and nice but there was something about him that make Zack's heart leap. He didn't know why and not knowing made him angry and he could only blame the boy for making him feel- whatever he was feeling. He was going to have to talk to Aerith about this soon before he starts to go crazy.

The walk felt awkward, Zack wanted to kill it but then again he wasn't sure if he wanted to talk to the blond or not. Cloud nervously adjusted his shoulder bag; probably trying to distract himself from the awkwardness.

"Um.." Cloud began looking to their walking feet. "I want to apologize again for what happened last week…" Another apology sheesh but anything was better than the awkwardness.

"It's no biggy" He said. Cloud looked up in surprise. Zack had actually given him a normal solid answer instead of a 'hm' or 'whatever'. Cloud smiled and walk on. Seeing the blonde's smile made his heart rush and his face began to warm. 'What the hell is this!' he began to feel angry again…

"Ah you must be the new comer!" A man said with a hint of excitement in his voice. He had long dark brown hair that he had slicked back and looked as if he were trying to grow in a beard. "I will be your teacher for the four years of you being here, I'm Angeal Hewly, there's no need to call me Mr. Hewly though, it doesn't suit me."

"Oh, hello Mr.- I mean Angeal, I'm Cloud Strife." Cloud smiled as they shook hands

Still feeling frustrated, Zack walked passed Angeal without giving him his usual cheery greeting. Yes it was very much unlike Zack to be grumpy. Zack was one of the most happy and hyper active kid Angeal ever knew, almost like a damn puppy! So in that moment when Zack grumpily threw himself in his seat Angeal knew that something was up, he would just have to talk to him later then.

"So Cloud, I saw the sketch that you submitted, I was very surprised and unsure when an unfinished piece of work got you into level A but then found myself in shock- in a good way of course!- when I saw it for myself. You gave a great talent Cloud and I'm glad to be teaching you."

Cloud's eyes widened a bit and his face flushed a bit. "Oh- uh, thank you! I'm glad to be here!"

"You can take that seat by Zack over there!" Angeal motioned for him. Cloud stiffened a bit, knowing that Zack was not very fond with him but put on a smile anyways as he thanked Angeal once more before heading to his assigned seat.

Zack almost growled when Cloud took his seat next to him, ALMOST growled, Zack wasn't a damn dog! Well whatever all he had to do was ignore Cloud, he could just be with Aerith while Cloud worked alone!

Having a level A class with just three students was very normal in the beginning of the year, they will eventually get more in the future because lower levels are able to re submit art work to try to level up. Finding this out made Cloud exited, that meant that Tifa still had a chance to be in level A with him, he wondered if she knew this little piece of information.

"Hey Cloud." Cloud looked up from his canvas. Aerith stood in front of him with a smile on her face. "Would you like to work with Zack and me?" She asked, Zack tensed up, it didn't go unnoticed to Cloud. As much as he wanted to get to know the two of them, he knows that Zack wanted nothing to do with him. It would be best if he stood away from them for a while.

"U-uhm no it's fine! I work better when I'm alone anyway." He said, smiling back at her.

Aerith's face faltered a bit, almost looking sad but quickly collected herself. "Oh I see, well maybe next time then, okay?"

"Sure!" Aerith then when back to her canvas that sat to Zack's right side while Cloud's was to his far, far left, Zack's doing no doubt. Aerith scowled at Zack making him jump.

"What did I do now?"

Cloud heard Zack and Aerith having some kind of heated conversation though he knew better than to be nosey. He wanted to get back to work on his piece but couldn't fight the horrid pang he was getting in his chest. He knew the feeling all too well, the feeling of loneliness, being left out, not being wanted. Zack didn't want to be friends with him so maybe it was best to not even try anymore.

He really hoped Tifa could get into level A soon…

It had been 2 weeks since Cloud and Tifa started school and so far Tifa couldn't find the boy that she was in love with plus she said that she wanted to improve some more before trying to get into level A. This meant that Cloud was still going to have to be left out in his class with the acceptation of Aerith trying to invite him to join her and Zack only to get rejected by him. Cloud still wasn't sure if Zack strongly disliked him and he was beginning to care less and less. Though he still wondered if Zack would have been a good friend or not…

It was a Saturday night and Zack had nothing to do. Well he would have but he really didn't feel like going out with friends tonight, he had a lot on his mind. In the past 3 weeks something had been growing inside of Zack and he had finally come to terms that what he was feeling is guilt. The guilt of being such an ass to the blonde made him frustrated and to build the guilt even more, he pointed the frustration towards Cloud. And now Cloud was alone, he drove Cloud away so now the boy is even avoiding him!

Zack began to feel anxious because he knew what he had to do, he had to go hunt down the blonde and beg for forgiveness. He let out a large sigh before jumping out of bed to put on a coat, the weather was finally cooling down so a coat or a jacket would come in handy, maybe even a sweater. Cloud was now back in his thoughts, the blond always wore that damn navy blue sweater, no matter how hot it was, did he ever wash that thing?

Zack closed his dorm door behind him and locked it. He adjusted his black coat before making his way down stairs. He didn't have high hopes of finding the blonde since it was already passed 7 and the sun was almost set but he had to at least try.

He made his way to the blonde's dorm; well at least he thinks it's the dorm. He only had this clue because he had run into Cloud leaving his dorm on the first day of school. And he was pretty sure Tseng was his roommate too sooo…

_Knock Knock_

Zack was about to leave after a few seconds being the bundle of nerves he was in, he jumped a little when the door opened only to reveal Tseng being the only one in the room. Maybe he did have the wrong dorm.

"Hey Zack, what's up?" He asked in his usual monotone voice, well he spoke like a mature adult but to Zack he was a boring monotone man.

"Oh uh...," He scratched the back of his head, he wasn't even sure if this was the right dorm but he had to at least try, right? "Is uh, is Cloud in?" Zack felt weird, he never really said the boy's name before so it felt a bit foreign.

Tseng blinked in surprise. "No, actually he just left a few minutes ago, I think he was on his way to the computer lab or something."

"Alright, cool!" Zack quickly said as he started to walk away, he didn't want Tseng to ask any questions. He cringed a bit when he heard Tseng call out his name. He turned around to face him. "Yeah?"

"Be careful with that kid," Tseng said. Zack was immediately confused and a bit curious on why the hell Tseng would even say that. "The kid is a Strife, the name sounded familiar to me when I first met him but be became really nervous when I mentioned it. So I did some research and what I found…" Tseng looked up a bit as if he were thinking on what he was going to say. "Just, be careful, alright?"

Zack was now full on 100% curious but before he could ask, Tseng went back into his room and shut the door. Zack stood there for a moment, trying to absorb everything that he was told. Strife? Strife, it did sound familiar somehow but he couldn't place his finger on it. Well maybe Tseng was over analyzing things I mean come on! Strife is like a common name, right! Zack has never met a Strife until Cloud came along but Strife could be a common name.  
>Zack shrugged everything off and went on his way to the computer lab where Cloud was supposed to be.<p>

Cloud snuggled into his sweater, the weather was getting colder and colder with the more days that pass. He should have worn a long sleeve under his sweater today. He was making his way to the computer lab since he really didn't have much to do since Tifa finally made some female friends to hang out with, he was offered to hang out with the group of females but be really didn't want a repeat of high school, ugh…

Cloud walked into the large room filled with desktop computers and a few empty tables for people to hang out with their own laptops and such. The computer room had a good crowd, probably gamers catching a break from school work. He sat in the very back row where the least people sat, he was planning on just sending out a few emails and streaming the net since he really had nothing better to do. He slipped on his reading glasses and got started.

Pressing the send button, he had sent out the last email to his mother, yes he talked to her on the phone often but emails where also good. Cloud jumped when someone slipped into the seat next to him but what really made him jump was when he saw that it was Zack who was sitting next to him. Did he not see Cloud? Why would he sit next to him? It must be some kind of mistake!

Zack looked almost embarrassed when he turned to look at the surprised blonde. He never noticed that he wore glasses, he didn't like it, they blocked his eyes- wait what is he thinking!? Zack cleared his throat as to prepare himself and Cloud for what he was about to do.

Now before Zack ever apologizes to anyone, he always thinks ' How should I do it and how could I do it?'. He did think of a way to apologize to the blond but he was sure that the boy was going to get defensive again and kick him in the face…again. But at that moment he really didn't care, he grabbed the blond and forced him into a hug.

Cloud's eyes went wide at the action but not long after they began to water. When did he get so sad? It was strange on how affection could affect people. Cloud tried to quickly wipe away his tears when he pulled away from Zack but he was sure that Zack saw it.

"What- wh-why-" Cloud wanted to ask but he was stuttering and was nervous.

", Just wanted to apologize for being such an ass to you." Zack explained as he got up and left, leaving Cloud frozen in confusion and surprise.

Zack had made it outside in the chilly air when he heard the blonde call out his name.

"Z-Zack!" Zack turned in confusion; he wasn't expecting the blonde to go after him. "U-um, do you-maybe want to play video games—if you're not busy that is!" Cloud said nervously.

Zack stared in surprise before he let a smile slip on his face.

"Sure."

**END CH3**

**A/N**

**Alright there was chapter 3 you guys! I hope you liked it! I mean I think that was a good way to end it if I say so myself! **

**It might be a while before chapter 4 comes out since I can't think of anything for it hehe ^^;; but hopefully I get his with motivation and inspiration so who knows!**

**XD**

**Welp that's all folks, see ya later on chapter 4!**


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